In episode 3 of season 3 of Botched, Dr. Paul Nassif and Dr. Terry Dubrow help a well-known singer who needs his nose reconstructed, a woman who stretched her ear lobes a tad too much and a woman with botched breasts.
Norwood Young, a singer with a beard, mustache and hair in a blue hue, said he realized he had a gift of singing when he was six years old and later became the featured artist of the band, Pieces of a Dream. Young bravely confesses he was sexually abused growing up and began having low self-esteem which ultimately led him to get surgeries.
During the first rhinoplasty surgery he had in the past, the surgeon cut the tip of his nose. To repair the damage from the first surgery, Young had a second surgery and that surgeon took ear cartilage to put back into his nose. Young said he was feeling great and later recorded a music video and was excited to hear people talk about his music, but instead many noticed his nose more than the music. He decided it was time to go back under the knife for the third time. Like his previous surgeries, the third surgery was unsuccessful and he had a hard time breathing and singing.
“I need this surgery to make me happy,” Young said. “What makes me happy is to sing”.
During the consultation, Dr. Nassif discovered the cartilage in his nose was essentially gone, making his breathing difficult. Dr. Nassif warned Young of the complications but said he would help him.
On surgery day, the blue-haired beard and mustache were shaved as he prepared for surgery. Dr. Nassif took fascia from the scalp, rib cartilage and composite graphs from his ear. During the procedure, the Botched doctors encountered scar tissue in his ear that made it difficult for the transfer of cartilage from the ear to the nose. To add to the toughness of the surgery, skin on Young’s left nostril tore which Nassif said was hard to repair and could form a small scar. The important factor Dr. Nassif was most concerned about was to be careful to not cut blood supply of the nose.
The next day, Young came into the office to see the healing progress. “I can breathe again,” he said. “It gives me confidence.”
A few scenes later, Young revealed his new nose during a performance in front of his friends and family who quickly became excited to see him happy. “For the first time in a long time, I don't have to concentrate on) what’s coming out of my mouth, or how,” Young said. “I can sing.”
Kathleen, a young woman with tattoos and body piercings said she once had over 30 piercings. She continued her body modification journey when she began stretching her ears on her own and discovered ear lobe scalpelling. Ear scalpelling allows a professional piercer to cut a slice in the ear lobe, instead of piercing it, to make the ear lobe larger. After working for a car dealership, she had a difficult time with customers as she was constantly attracting attention, sometimes negative.
In the past, she said doctors told her she did not have enough tissue in her ears to be helped. During the consultation, Kathleen’s sister tagged along with her. Dr. Dubrow explained the piercer who scalpelled her ear technically practiced medicine without a license by performing the procedure. Dr. Dubrow said the main concern was the blood supply and if it were to be cut in the wrong place, it could cut the blood supply and her ear would turn black and die.
Before the surgery, Dr. Nassif explained there would be no reason to go under anesthesia and that she would have to remain awake for the duration of the surgery. Dr. Nassif made the incisions around the ears to make stitches contouring her ear to try to make it look back to normal. Since she was awake, said she could feel pain, which Dr. Nassif said was a good thing because that means the blood supply was healthy.
Later, Kathleen returned to the office for her checkup and began to tear up once the bandages were removed. “Before surgery my ears looked like rubber bands but you can’t snap these anymore.” She said knows the surgery will help her career and people will take her more seriously.
For the final patient of episode 3 of Botched, Dr. Dubrow and Dr. Nassif met Desiree, a woman who grew up with one breast that kept growing throughout puberty while the other breast did not. Desiree said she got teased a lot growing up and began stuffing her bra with tissue and anything else that would help her look even. After getting engaged to her high school sweetheart, she couldn’t take the look of her breasts when she realized she wouldn’t be able to wear the wedding dress she dreamed of.
Enough was enough and before she married, she underwent surgery to have her breasts more even. The surgery, however, was unsuccessful as her breasts and nipples were not symmetrical.
Now, hoping to have the magic touch from Dr. Dubrow, she said she wants to be a strong woman for her family and three daughters.“Complicated problems have complicated solutions,” Dr. Dubrow said. In the examining room, Dr. Dubrow told her she has size, symmetry and shape problems. While Desiree said she would like to be a full D-size cup, Dr. Dubrow encouraged her that symmetry is more important than size. On the surgery day, Dr. Dubrow spent the time to find the perfect sizes for each breast since each one varied in size. Desiree received the D-size cup she wanted and said she felt more confident than ever.
Her story on Botched concluded with scenes of her family waiting for the unveiling of her new body and confidence. The family went to a lake where her daughters saw her in a bikini for the first time. With adorable shots of her daughters on camera talking about how beautiful her mother is, Desiree’s story ended on a high note as she said she is now the role model for her family that she has always wanted to be.